The biogeographical relationships between far-separated populations, in particular, those in the mainland and islands, remain unclear for widespread species in eastern Asia where the current distribution of plants was greatly influenced by the Quaternary climate. Deciduous Oriental oak (Quercus variabilis) is one of the most widely distributed species in eastern Asia. In this study, leaf material of 528 Q. variabilis trees from 50 populations across the whole distribution (Mainland China, Korea Peninsular as well as Japan, Zhoushan and Taiwan Islands) was collected, and three cpDNA intergenic spacer fragments were sequenced using universal primers. A total of 26 haplotypes were detected, and it showed a weak phylogeographical structure in eastern Asia populations at species level, however, in the central-eastern region of Mainland China, the populations had more haplotypes than those in other regions, with a significant phylogeographical structure (N ST = 0.751> G ST = 0.690, P<0.05). Q. variabilis displayed high interpopulation and low intrapopulation genetic diversity across the distribution range. Both unimodal mismatch distribution and significant negative Fu’s FS indicated a demographic expansion of Q. variabilis populations in East Asia. A fossil calibrated phylogenetic tree showed a rapid speciation during Pleistocene, with a population augment occurred in Middle Pleistocene. Both diversity patterns and ecological niche modelling indicated there could be multiple glacial refugia and possible bottleneck or founder effects occurred in the southern Japan. We dated major spatial expansion of Q. variabilis population in eastern Asia to the last glacial cycle(s), a period with sea-level fluctuations and land bridges in East China Sea as possible dispersal corridors. This study showed that geographical heterogeneity combined with climate and sea-level changes have shaped the genetic structure of this wide-ranging tree species in East Asia.

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To investigate the effects of expanding rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) cultivation on water cycling in Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA), evapotranspiration (ET) was measured within rubber plantations at Bueng Kan, Thailand, and Kampong Cham, Cambodia. After energy closure adjustment, mean annual rubber ET was 1211 and 1459 mm yr 21 at the Thailand and Cambodia sites, respectively, higher than that of other tree-dominated land covers in the region, including tropical seasonal forest (812-1140 mm yr 21 ), and savanna (538-1060 mm yr 21 ). The mean proportion of net radiation used for ET by rubber (0.725) is similar to that of tropical rainforest (0.729) and much higher than that of tropical seasonal forest (0.595) and savanna (0.548). Plant area index (varies with leaf area changes), explains 88.2% and 73.1% of the variance in the ratio of latent energy flux (energy equivalent of ET) to potential latent energy flux (LE/LE pot ) for midday rain-free periods at the Thailand and Cambodia sites, respectively. High annual rubber ET results from high late dry season water use, associated with rapid refoliation by this brevideciduous species, facilitated by tapping of deep soil water, and by very high wet season ET, a characteristic of deciduous trees. Spatially, mean annual rubber ET increases strongly with increasing net radiation (R n ) across the three available rubber plantation observation sites, unlike nonrubber tropical ecosystems, which reduce canopy conductance at high R n sites. High water use by rubber raises concerns about potential effects of continued expansion of tree plantations on water and food security in MSEA.

The rapid and widespread expansion of rubber plantations in Southeast Asia necessitates a greater understanding of tree physiology and the impacts of water consumption on local hydrology. Sap flow measurements were used to study the intra- and inter-annual variations in transpiration rate (Et) in a rubber stand in the low-elevation plain of central Cambodia. Mean stand sap flux density (JS) indicates that rubber trees actively transpire in the rainy season, but become inactive in the dry season. A sharp, brief drop in JS occurred simultaneously with leaf shedding in the middle of the dry season in January. Although the annual maxima of JS were approximately the same in the two study years, the maximum daily stand Et of ∼2.0 mm day(-1) in 2010 increased to ∼2.4 mm day(-1) in 2011. Canopy-level stomatal response was well explained by changes in solar radiation, vapor pressure deficit, soil moisture availability, leaf area, and stem diameter. Rubber trees had a relatively small potential to transpire at the beginning of the study period, compared with average diffuse-porous species. After 2 years of growth in stem diameter, transpiration potential was comparable to other species. The sensitivity of canopy conductance (gc) to atmospheric drought indicates isohydric behavior of rubber trees. Modeling also predicted a relatively small sensitivity of gc to the soil moisture deficit and a rapid decrease in gc under extreme drought conditions. However, annual observations suggest the possibility of a change in leaf characteristics with tree maturity and/or initiation of latex tapping. The estimated annual stand Et was 469 mm year(-1) in 2010, increasing to 658 mm year(-1) in 2011. Diagnostic analysis using the derived gc model showed that inter-annual change in stand Et in the rapidly growing young rubber stand was determined mainly by tree growth rate, not by differences in air and soil variables in the surrounding environment. Future research should focus on the potentially broad applicability of the relationship between Et and tree size as well as environmental factors at stands different in terms of clonal type and age.

The leaf vein traits of plants result partially from adaptations to environmental factors during the longterm evolution. However, no general conclusion on the variation trend of the vein density along a climate gradient or the response of such vein density-climate relationship pattern to climate changes has been made. We examined the variations in leaf vein density and other leaf traits of oriental oak (Quercus variabilis) in 10 in situ populations (in situ populations) across temperate-subtropical biomes and the response of the leaf vein density to environmental changes in 7 populations grown in a common garden (garden populations). The results show that the minor vein density of the in situ populations (C3rd order) significantly decreased with increasing latitude (r 2 = 0.44 and P = 0.04). This pattern remained unchanged for the garden populations (r 2 = 0.67 and P = 0.02). The minor vein densities of both the garden and in situ populations were positively correlated to the mean annual temperature (MAT) of the origins (r 2 = 0.66 and P = 0.03 for the garden populations; r 2 = 0.37 and P = 0.06 for the in situ populations), but their correlation to the mean annual precipitation (MAP) of the origins was not significant. Compared with the MAT and MAP, the vein density displayed a significantly lower correlation to climate variables in the current year or the current-year growing seasons. For the garden populations, the minor vein density significantly increased with leaf dry mass per area and decreased with petiole length and leaf length. These results imply that leaf vein density is genotypically fixed and is therefore not responsive to temporal changes in the growing conditions.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) stock in mountain ecosystems is highly heterogeneous because of differences in soil, climate, and vegetation with elevation. Little is known about the spatial distribution and chemical composition of SOC along altitude gradients in subtropical mountain regions, and the controlling factors remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the changes in SOC stock and chemical composition along an elevation gradient (219, 405, 780, and 1268 m a.s.l.) on Lushan Mountain, subtropical China. The results suggested that SOC stocks were significantly higher at high altitude sites (1268 m) than at low altitude ones (219, 405, and 780 m), but the lower altitude sites did not differ significantly. SOC stocks correlated positively with mean annual precipitation but negatively with mean annual temperature and litter C/N ratio. The variations in SOC stocks were related mainly to decreasing temperature and increasing precipitation with altitude, which resulted in decreased litter decomposition at high altitude sites. This effect was also demonstrated by the chemical composition of SOC, which showed lower alkyl C and higher O‐alkyl C contents at high altitude sites. These results will improve the understanding of soil C dynamics and enhance predictions of the responses of mountain ecosystem to global warming under climate change.

a b s t r a c tDelineating the characteristics of biosphere-atmosphere exchange in rubber (Hevea brasiliensis Müll. Arg.) plantations, which are rapidly expanding throughout mainland Southeast Asia, is important to understanding the impacts of the land-use change on environmental processes. In attempt to shed new light on the impacts of conversion to rubber, we have conducted eddy flux measurements over a 3-year period in two rubber plantation sites: (1) Som Sanuk, located in northeastern Thailand; and (2) Cambodian Rubber Research Institute (CRRI), located in central Cambodia. Both sites have a distinct dry season. We used a combination of actual evapotranspiration (E T ) flux measurements and an inverted version of a simple 2-layer E T model for estimating the mean canopy stomatal conductance (g s ). The potential water balance (precipitation (P) − potential evaporation (E T POT )) for each season (i.e.revealed when and how the water use is controlled. In the seasons when actual water balance (P − E T ) was negative (DJF and MAM), the deficit was compensated with soil water from the previous season at depths of 0-2 m (Thailand site) and 0-3 m (Cambodia site). At both sites, the reference value of g s (g sref ) and the sensitivity of g s to atmospheric demand (m) appeared to be less in DJF and MAM than each in the other two 3-month periods (seasons). On average, in a whole year, m/g sref was less in Thailand («0.6) than in Cambodia (near 0.6 for part of the year), suggesting that there was less sufficient stomatal regulation at the Thailand site, where there might be little risk of water stress-induced hydraulic failure because of its higher annual rainfall amount. In comparison, at CRRI where annual P − E T POT was negative, there was stricter stomatal regulation, preventing excessive xylem cavitation.

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